London vegan news, reviews & events
Remember when I wrote about Firezza using vegan cheese?
You can go here to read my original post about this pizza restaurant chain with 17 locations. Piping hot pizza with Violife for all your convenience food desires!
There is something I think I forgot to mention in the original post. Every Tuesday, Firezza offers a very special deal that I managed to take advantage of this week. Check it out below.
You all know about the vegan cruise I am a part of over New Year’s Eve. You cannot possibly have escaped my excitement. (If you have, click here for more info)
I just found out some extra information for those of you who have already booked a cabin on the cruise down the Danube.
The ship we are travelling on includes electricity assisted bicycles that can be used during shore stops. You can cycle around some of the gorgeous towns and cities we visit!
Also, there are these super nifty GPS and information devices for passengers that are pre-loaded with guided tours, directions and cruise commentary. Check out the video below.
The video shows both the bikes and the handheld devices.
I thought I couldn’t be more excited for this cruise, but I am now!
Go here to read about the cruise and here to book one of the remaining cabins.
You all know tibits, right?
This central London restaurant and bar has for many years been a favourite haunt of compassionate diners, especially since they have made every Tuesday ‘vegan day’ on their self service food boat.
The vegetarian restaurant appears to exploring the vegan angle more and more these days, with the latest big news being the release of a 100% vegan recipe collection called Vegan Love Story.
80 plant-based recipes are housed in a gorgeous hardcover, accompanied by enticing colour photos. It really is a joy to flick through.
You can buy the new vegan cookbook by tibits (in partnership with Zurich restaurant Hiltl – the oldest vegetarian restaurant in the world) by popping into the restaurant on Heddon Street in Mayfair, or online here.
Let’s hope this book is another step in the journey of tibits becoming a fully vegan restaurant.
How would you like to win a copy of the vegan cookbook by tibits?
A change in season means a change in cupcake flavours at Ms. Cupcake in Brixton.
I spotted this gorgeous autumnal flavour during a recent visit.
Other flavours for the cooler weather include Lemon Matcha, Speculoos, Black Bottom (with cream cheese baked in!), Apple Crumble Custard and finally, Blackberry.
How GORGEOUS do all of those sound?
Catch the special seasonal varieties until November in store and visit the Ms Cucpake stand at VegfestUK London on October 10 and 11, 2015.
Follow Ms Cupcake on Twitter and Instagram.
Roll up for the BIGGEST celebration of cruelty-free cake to ever be staged in the UK.
Join your guest host and judge Fat Gay Vegan as he nibbles his way through the entries before naming the winners of the West Midlands Vegan Fest 2015 ‘Vegan Bake Off’.
There will be prizes. There will be drama. There will be a very full FGV!
Categories include:
– Decoration (cakes only/judged on appearance)
– 14 and Under (any baked item by people aged 14 or under/judged on taste and appearance)
– Chocolate (any baked item with chocolate as the star attraction/judged on taste and appearance)
– Stallholder (open to cakes, cupcakes, slices and cookies by stallholders/judged on taste and appearance)
– Cheesecake (raw or cooked cheesecakes/judged on taste and appearance)
You can enter one item in one category only. The cost per entry is £1 per item. All entries will be sold after judging with all profits from entry fees and sales to be donated to a local charity.
You will be able to drop off your entry to the Fat Gay Vegan stand on either Saturday or Sunday of the fest with the cut off time being 3pm on Sunday. No entries will be taken after this time.
The judging room will be open to the public after 4pm. The judging room holds approximately 100 people and entry will be on a first come basis.
Go here for more information on the West Midlands Vegan Fest 2015.
Let me know you are interested in entering the Vegan Bake Off or have plans to attend as a spectator with an RSVP on the Facebook event.
Extra note: you can supply extra cake for tasting/judging purposes if you do not want your entry to be cut during the tasting process. You must also include a list of ingredients with your entry.
Check out this AMAZING guest post from a reader with the same name as me. No, not FGV. His name is Sean M. and he has kindly put together a wonderful guide to vegan eating in Surrey.
Sean has indicated this is only part one of his vegan exploration of Surrey, so watch out for the second instalment later in the year.
Take it away, Sean!
Leeds has some really great stirrings in relation to vegan food. I’m not about to declare it a vegan hotspot that you will be bowled over by, but the Northern city is certainly coming along leaps and bounds in recent years.
Check out this 100% vegan hummus and falafel cafe situated in the city centre.
As you have probably seen online, I have teamed up with Fry’s Family Foods in order to raise money for vegan-run Hugletts Wood Farm Animal Sanctuary.
The campaign is off to a flying start. Check out the video update below for the latest news on the campaign.
I am thrilled we have already raised £1000 but we still have a long way to go. Hugglets urgently need funds to restore all of the fencing around their property, as well as install new security cameras to keep the rescued animals safe.
Please donate now and share this news widely.
Competition news
Would you like to visit Hugletts Wood Farm Animal Sanctuary with me on World Animal Day courtesy of Fry’s Family Foods?
Fry’s is kindly sponsoring a minibus that will travel to the sanctuary on World Animal Day, Sunday October 4, 2015. Lunch and snacks on the day will be provided by Fry’s and passengers will get a chance to meet some of the rescued animals up close and personal.
How to enter?
Take a photo of yourself holding your favourite Fry’s Family Foods product and share on Twitter or Facebook. Make sure you use the hashtag #HumanKind and tag @frysfamilyUK for your chance to win a double pass on the bus.
Three pairs of tickets will be given away. Winners will need to make their own way to and from Central London on Sunday October 4, 2015. The bus will depart at 9:30am and return at approximately 6:00pm.
If I wore a hat, I would take it off to these people.
A group of compassionate people in Scotland just carried out what is one of the best examples of activism I have seen in a long time. They wanted to get a message across to their communities, so they raised the funds to erect a billboard in both Glasgow and Edinburgh.
The brilliant yet subtle message comes across clearly and thoughtfully. It gets everyday people thinking about how they have been socialised into accepting some animals as loving companions whilst others are bred, mistreated and killed for food.
Congratulations to everyone involved in this fantastic campaign. I hope we see many more like this in the future.
Find more info on the Vegan Billboard campaign here.
Do you want to see something that will melt your heart?
Make sure you switch your TV over to the Community Channel (in the UK) this Sunday night (September 27, 2015) at 6pm for a very special documentary that will make you want to rush to Mexico to cuddle a rescued monkey.
My friend Wendy Turner Webster recently teamed up with Julie Peasgood for a trip to Mexico in order to visit a sanctuary for spider monkeys rescued from the pet trade.
This is what the resulting documentary, Monkey Business, has in store for viewers:
In Wendy & Julie’s Monkey Business, the intrepid duo fly from London to Cancun in Mexico to visit The Jungle Place – a sanctuary dedicated to the rescue of the endangered Spider Monkeys who are victims of the illegal pet trade, poaching, and habitat destruction.
The Jungle Place is a sustainable charity and has the endorsement of the Born Free Foundation. It is run by Heidi and Joel – a couple who have dedicated their lives to the setting up and running of the sanctuary.
In the programme, Wendy & Julie meet the residents and learn of their stories, and find out how Heidi and Joel went from casual holiday makers to spider monkey rescuers and renowned experts.
The documentary debuts this Sunday night. Make sure you tune in for a simultaneously heartwarming and heartbreaking tale of compassion. Community Channel can be found at Freeview 63, Freeview HD 109, Sky 539, Virgin 233 and freesat 651. Look for other platform screenings soon.
Like Monkey Business on Facebook and read more about The Jungle Place here.
Monkey Business featured in Hello magazine
Extra note: Covent Garden bar and restaurant Joe Allen has generously created a vegan-friendly ‘Spider Monkey’ Cocktail and is donating £1 to The Jungle Place for each drink sold. Stop in for a drink if you feel like helping the spider monkeys in a unique way!